LANDIKOTAL: Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa hasmade a conditional offer to the militants fighting against the state.
COAS has said that state would forgive the Pakistani militants if they laiddown arms and pledged not to challenge the writ of the state.
The army chief was speaking at a jirga of tribal elders held at theLandikotal army garrison.
Peshawar Corps Commander Lieutenant General Nazir Ahmad Butt, FrontierCorps Inspector General Major General Wasim Ashraf, Political Agent ofKhyber Agency Captain (retd) Khalid Mehmood, assistant political agents ofBara, Landikotal and Jamrud and a large number of tribal elders, formerparliamentarians and civil and military officials were present on theoccasion.
General Bajwa said that they were about to reach a conclusion with theAfghan government to trace the militants across the border in Afghanistan.He said the government had decided to announce general amnesty for themilitants hiding in Afghanistan if they renounced violence.
He said the tribal people should cooperate with the law-enforcing agenciesand security forces to arrest the facilitators of the militants attackingthe government installations. He said the Pakistan Army was committed tomaintaining peace in the country.
He added that militancy had been rooted out and mega development projectswould be launched in Fata to address the problems of the tribal people.Regarding the future status of Fata, General Bajwa said the Pakistan Armywould support the decision of the majority of tribal people and accept whatthey wanted.
He added that dialogue of those in favour of Fata’s merger with KhyberPakhtunkhwa and those opposed to it would be facilitated to settle thisissue.
The army chief said Pakistan had cordial relations with the Afghangovernment and it had offered its support for bringing peace inAfghanistan. He pointed out that Pakistan rendered sacrifices for the sakeof peace and stability in the region.
Answering the questions of tribal elders, General Bajwa said they hadallocated Rs1.5 billion in the army budget and this amount would be usedfor the uplift of Fata. He said Afghan citizens were their Muslim brothersand Pakistan wanted to enhance trade relations with Afghanistan.
The COAS said the tribal people rendered enormous sacrifices in the fightagainst militancy and this would be remembered in the history of Pakistan.He directed the Frontier Corps Inspector General to report to him about thedevelopment projects in Fata.